Documented by Rachel Youdelman
What happened: At its first meeting of 2024, the Clovis City Council directed planning staff to find a way to keep East Shaw Avenue open during a long-planned closure between DeWolf and Leonard avenues to widen the street and add an underpass, a major feature included in the Loma Vista Master Plan.
The request for an alternative to the full closure was placed on the meeting’s agenda by the general partners of the Loma Vista Marketplace. The shopping center under construction at Shaw and Leonard avenues is slated to include Ulta Beauty, Ross and Grocery Outlet, as well as Dutch Bros Coffee and McDonald’s.
Representatives of the shopping center expressed concerns about the impact of a long closure on their ability to attract and retain commercial tenants. They requested that the plan be revised to limit the closure to two to four weeks, rather than the current plan that requires a full closure of eight to 12 months.
Representatives of Starbucks, Me-n-Ed’s Pizza and Panda Express spoke in opposition to the closure, as did Dan Zack of Zack Urban Solutions who said tax revenue of $50 million a year would be lost.
Planning Director Renee Mathis said construction on Shaw Avenue was originally scheduled for an earlier phase of the project, but is now planned to begin in 2025. She said that staff is recommending the council proceed with the full closure as planned because it provides the highest public safety and convenience with the least amount of modified traffic patterns, in addition to being “the most cost-effective alternative, because it offers the fastest overall construction schedule.”
The Shaw Avenue widening project is funded using $21 million in regional Measure C funding, which has also helped lower fees for developers, according to the agenda.
Alternatives to the original plan were discussed, including removing an underpass at Sanders Avenue, but Mayor Lynne Ashbeck said that could also cause lengthy delays because it would require a revision of the master plan.
Development impact fee study: The council also spent more than an hour discussing a commissioned report on the city’s development impact fees and how funding in Clovis compares with similar communities.
The study found that Clovis is comparable to other California cities in the amount of fees charged, but that it is unusual that the city does not allow developers to use Community Facilities District financing, and recommended the city develop a policy allowing it.
The city hired Kosmont Companies to do an analysis of how the city calculates developer fees following concerns that the current manner of funding is unsustainable and other means of funding will be necessary to ensure the city’s future growth.
Development impact fees are charged by the city to developers and help pay for police and fire services, streets, traffic signals, water and sewer infrastructure and parks.
Community Facilities Districts (CFDs), also known as Mello-Roos districts, are special tax districts that levy a special property tax as a means to raise funds for building infrastructure in new real estate development.
Several local real estate developers spoke in favor of allowing CFDs, in addition to Mike Prandini of the Building Industry Association.
Kosmont will provide another workshop for the council focused on water infrastructure in the coming weeks before the council re-evaluates the city’s fees this spring.
Ashbeck said that the reason Clovis has not used CFDs in the past is because late, long-time council member Harry Armstrong was opposed to them. She said that the report raised questions for the future.
Cannabis deliveries OK’d: With a 4-1 vote, the council approved a change in the municipal code allowing for the delivery of medical marijuana in city limits.
Council member Diane Pearce was the lone vote against the change. Under Senate Bill 1186, all California jurisdictions must allow the delivery of medical cannabis products within city limits by the start of 2024.
Up next: The Clovis City Council will meet again Jan. 26.
